Beware the Quiet Ones
by BlueAlseides
Summary: Set in the same setting as my earlier story: "Home is Wherever You Are". Neville finds out that you never truly leave your past behind and sometimes your past seeks you out. How far will he go to protect those that he cares about?


**Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter. This story is meant purely in tribute to the original work.**

**This story takes place in the same setting as my earlier story: "Home is Wherever You Are". You don't have to read that one to understand what's going on in this story but it might help set the scene better.**

Neville Longbottom strolled through the door to his flat after a long day of making preparations for his and his wife's upcoming trip out of town. "Hello dear, I'm home!", he called out as he hung up his coat. Neville was quite tired after spending a couple hours in the library doing some research and then running around town to procure supplies. One of the things he found most annoying about travelling to hot weather from cold weather was the need to pack warm clothing for the departure and the return legs. He sighed as he accepted for the umpteenth time that it could not be helped. Neville glanced down at a copy of The Daily Prophet he had picked up on his way home. He was glad the periodical had long since been purged of the drivel that had filled its pages during his later years at Hogwarts. He also realized that his wife had not answered his greeting. "Luna, I'm home!", he called out again. Neville knew that sometimes Luna did not always answer if she was deep in thought, in middle of writing, or both. He winced slightly as he walked through the living room toward the hallway leading to the bedrooms. His old injury from his auror days seemed to be flaring today, causing Neville to lean more heavily on his cane than he normally did. Neville reminded himself to do some more stretching exercises tonight. He was initially skeptical when Luna showed him a physical therapy book she had read in the hope that it would help his leg mobility. Neville had to admit that Luna's idea had helped out immensely. He smiled as he thought, not for the first time, that his wife's propensity to think outside the box had proven most useful. "_Waterproof quills_", Neville reminded himself as his eyes scanned over The Prophet's pages, "_Always too much to do and so little time to get it all done._" He rounded the corner into the hallway leading to their bedroom. "Luna dear, have you thought about what you want for sup-" Neville's words came to an abrupt halt as he looked up and took in the sight before his eyes.

There was a man, a large man, standing in the hallway. He had one burly arm around Luna's neck and a wand pointed at her temple. There was a trickle of blood coming from her left nostril, marring the fair skin of her face. Her wide were wider than usual, filled with a mixture of fear and anger. Neville took less than a second to process the scene before him. During that time, The Daily Prophet had dropped from his hand and he was already drawing his wand before the periodical had even hit the floor. Neville did draw his wand with impressive speed but his opponent had just too much of the element of surprise on his side.

"Petrificus Totalus!"

Neville's body went rigid, his arms pinned to his side, and he swayed a bit before falling to the floor with a thud. He had always thought that was the worst part of that spell. It was bad enough that your limbs became pinioned to your body and you went rigid as a lamppost. But then there was that sickening pause before you toppled over like a felled tree. And it never ceased to be a jarring impact that always stung a little. However, these were the least of Neville's worries at the moment.

Neville's assailant exulted with an exclamation half way between a laugh and a cheer. He brought his mouth uncomfortably close to Luna's ear and spoke loud enough for Neville to hear. "Thank you for being such a dear, beautiful. Now, please stand aside, your husband I have issues to discuss." With that, Luna's captor hurled her face-first into the wall. She yelped as she slammed into the wall and crumpled to the ground. Their assailant gave Luna a rough kick to make sure she was out and stepped over her prone form toward Neville. He quickly kicked Neville's cane aside and snatched up his wand.

"Neville Longbottom! Hero of Hogwarts! Leader of Dumbledore's Army! Slayer of Nagini! Distinguished auror! Have I about covered everything? Ha! Is this the best that Longbottom had to offer? I had to admit, I was expecting more from such a legendary hero." Neville's immobilized form did not respond and his antagonist pretended to remember just then. "Goodness, where are my manners? I didn't introduce myself, did I? My name is Jacob Griffiths. Name ring a bell? Well, I can't really expect you to respond now can I? I imagine you recognize my name, I'm not surprised. How about this, does the name Silas Lattimore mean anything to you?" Neville did recognize that name but, again, he could not respond. His captor seemed to know. "I imagine it does, doesn't it? Silas was not his real name. He was born Jason Griffiths and he was my brother." A very pregnant pause followed. "Now that you've had some time to let that sink in, you can probably guess why I'm here. Don't get me wrong, Jason could really get on your nerves sometimes. Made you want to do some bodily harm. But he was family. We were the only family the other had left. So you can see that I might be a bit vexed that a second-rate, sorry excuse for a flatfoot like yourself blasted my little brother off the roof of a 10 storey building. You were bloody proud of yourself, weren't ya? Made you feel like a real big man eh? My family may not have much character Longbottom, I'll admit that. But one thing we do have is our word. And I gave my word to my little brother that I'd do right by him. And that has caused our paths to cross."

"Like I said Neville, may I call you Neville? No big matter. I was expecting more from you. But you've gone soft. I don't mean by your leg or your cane, but you've lost your edge. So, think of this as me doing you a favor. I'm relieving you of the fate of dull, boring life, devoid of glory and excitement. You'll get to leave this world remembered more as a hero rather than another old man dying in his sleep. And don't worry about your pretty little wife. I'll make sure she's well taken care of. She's a lovely thing, I'll give you that. Nice pair of-aaaaggghhh!"

Jacob's words were cut short by a solid object driving into the back of his right knee, causing him to crumple to kneeling position. His temper flared as he instantly surmised that Luna had awoken. He was further incensed that she had possessed the temerity to attack him. Jacob towered over her and was nearly twice her weight. He decided that not only was he going to teach her a decisive lesson but also that by the time he was through, she'd be begging for death. As Jacob pivoted and brought his wand up, he heard Luna's voice, as casually as if he were an invited guest and she were offering him a cup of tea, state: "Here you go."

Jacob was not easily surprised and it had been quite some time since the last occurrence. Therefore, this occasion caused a split second of hesitation on his part. During this brief time, he realized that Luna was holding something right up his face. Instead of something sharp or blunt as he expected from a weapon, it was…somewhat fleshy, and damp, and…fragrant. He couldn't quite place the smell and it only added to his confusion. However, Jacob's puzzlement and hesitation soon gave way to the realization that there was something terribly tight around his neck and face and that he was no longer able to breathe.

The sensation of having the ability to breathe taken away is unpleasant for anyone under most normal circumstances. Arguably, it can be said that it is worse to lose that ability while inhaling rather than exhaling. This is due to the fact that the lungs are filled and expanded and the added pressure contributes to the feelings of anxiety. However, there are those who believe it is worse to lose the breathing ability while exhaling due to the lack of a reserve of oxygen left in the lungs. Jacob just happened to lose his ability to breathe while inhaling but he didn't much care for debating which scenario would be worse at the moment. Regardless of when one would lose the ability to breathe, the best thing to do is to remain calm. Anxiety only causes heart rates to rise and what little oxygen remains will be more rapidly consumed by the body. The next thing to remember is to be efficient with one's actions. You will only have a limited amount of time to remedy your unfortunate situation and the more motions you make, the more of your oxygen reserve you will deplete. The worst thing you can do is to panic and flail aimlessly.

Jacob began to panic and flail aimlessly. Luna planted her foot firmly in Jacob's solar plexus and sent him to the floor. As he grasped in futility at the vines around his neck and face, Luna calmly retrieved her wand from his pocket and picked up his own wand from where it had dropped to the floor. She aimed her wand at Jacob and sent the same spell he had directed at Neville. Jacob's convulsing form became instantly still and Luna stepped over him to her motionless husband. She lifted Neville from the curse and he instantly struggled to his feet. "Are you alright?", he asked rather breathlessly.

"I should be asking you that", Luna replied with remarkable calm, "I'm fine, Neville."

Neville quickly retrieved his wand and hustled over to Jacob's motionless form. His leg was bothering him again but he could afford to ignore it for now. Neville gave Jacob's body a nudge with his foot to make sure he was truly immobilized. Luna joined him at his side. "Did he hurt you? I mean, did he…", Neville struggled to get his words out in a rapid but coherent manner.

"He hit me with a stunning spell and struck me but no, he didn't do anything else. Although it sounded like he intended to later." Luna shuddered a little at the thought.

Neville wrapped his wife up in a fierce embrace. "Thank God you're alright. I watched you out of the corner of my eye. Well done Luna."

Luna smiled. "I had a good instructor. I'm just glad it worked. I have to admit, having that in our home did prove handy." Neville stepped back to look over their assailant lying on the floor. Luna stepped forward to regard the intruder. "You may be interested to know Mr. Griffiths that you have a very unique plant attached to you right now. Neville discovered it during our travels and brought some samples back with him. It's called a Faerun Moonflower. They are actually related to morning glories but there are some types that flower at night, hence the name. Neville also kept some especially for me, given our related names. Quite thoughtful of him actually. This particular flower is quite useful for medicinal purposes. However, it can also be quite hazardous for reasons you have now become aware of. Morning glories grow as creeping vines and do quite well climbing trees, other plants, and rocks. When cultivated, they make excellent coverings for trellises, walls, and so forth. This particular species has very strong vines and they tend to be very good and quick about ensnaring anything that they come into contact with-"

"Luna-", Neville interjected.

"Yes dear? Did I get something wrong about the moonflower?", Luna asked.

"No, you were actually spot on but I don't think he cares much about the moonflower right now."

"I didn't think I was _that_ boring."

"No love, that's not it at all. You see, his face has turned blue, I think he has stopped breathing."

"Oh dear, I wasn't quite intending for that to happen. Does that mean he didn't hear a word I said about the moonflower? Should I write it down for him to read later?"

Neville could not help his mouth dropping open in abject shock. "_How DOES she do that?_", he wondered in complete bewilderment and not for the first time.

_Some Time Later, Deep Within Azkaban Prison_

Neville had always thought that the very sight of Azkaban Prison was dreadful enough to deter anyone from a life of crime. Admittedly, Azkaban was no longer quite as bad as it used to be with the Dementors long since gone. However, that was a relative term and it was still not the sort place one would want to spend a holiday. Neville had been to Azkaban in official capacity enough times that he knew his way around some parts of the prison. Had anyone told Neville, during his years at Hogwarts, that he would voluntarily come to know any part of Azkaban well, he would have laughed in their faces, shyness notwithstanding. However, for this visit, Neville needed help. And it was best to do what he was about to do with help, especially from an old friend. Kenneth McNeil and Neville had known each other since Neville had brought his first criminal to Azkaban. Ken was not a person to forget friends, certainly not friends to whom he owed favors. Ken led his old friend through the final entry control point and to the cell Neville had requested.

Neville paused before the formidable looking door that was most certainly stronger than the ones found at Gringotts. "Thanks again for this Ken. We'll call us even now, yeah?"

Ken shook his head. "No favor needed for this one Nev. This one's on me."

"You sure about that? This is a lot I'm asking of you."

"I'm sure Nev. Certainly not for this one."

"Alright, if you're sure. And thanks, again."

"Don't mention it."

Neville stepped through the door Ken held open and took in the sight of the disheveled man sitting against the wall. The prisoner looked up at his visitor and surprise was evident on his features. Neville broke the silence first. "Greetings, Amycus Carrow."

"Loser Longbottom? You're the last person I'd expect to see here. What did I do to deserve this?"

"I see you're as eloquent as ever Amycus."

"That's Professor Carrow to you or Sir."

"You never rated the title of 'Professor' and 'sir' is reserved for those who deserve respect."

"Insubordinate as ever."

"I'll take that as a compliment, coming from you."

"Listen Longbottom, I'm quite busy here as you can see and my time is precious. Waste your breath and then get lost."

"I had a visitor recently. Jacob Griffiths."

"Never heard of him."

"Yes, he said the same about you at first."

"Sounds like a liar to me."

"I'm quite convinced he was telling the truth. Which is what I want from you Amycus."

"Is that all? Go ahead and hold my nose and pour the veritaserum down my throat. Might as well get this over with so I can go back to watching my wall."

"I won't be using that today."

"Really?", Amycus' eyebrows raised up nearly to his hairline. "And why would that be? Let me guess, since you're not an active auror anymore, you're not here in an official capacity. And since veritaserum is a controlled substance, tracked with serial numbers, and usage is logged with written records, you can only use it with Ministry sanction." Neville's silence only encouraged Amycus. "And let me take another guess, since you don't have any with you, you don't have access to it or permission to use it."

"I won't be needing it."

"Is that what you told Jacob as well?"

"More or less."

"So what's your plan Longbottom? You going to use the Cruciatus Curse on me to get me to talk?"

"Not my plan."

"I didn't think you'd have the guts to use an Unforgivable Curse. Even if you had the leeway to do it."

"Careful Amycus, you might hurt my feelings."

"I doubt you'd even have the magical abilities needed to use that curse."

"Oh no, please stop. Now you really _are_ hurting my feelings." If Neville's voice had dripped any more sarcasm, there would have been a puddle on the floor.

"So what is your brilliant plan Longbottom?"

"It actually involves one of your favorite subjects. You see, I learned a few things from our Muggle counterparts."

Amycus gave a sharp laugh. "Muggle techniques? I must admit I'm surprised. What could Muggles possibly ever teach the likes of us? But then again, maybe I shouldn't be surprised. After all, you always were a blood traitor, consorting with Mudbloods-"

"Careful Amycus. It's one thing if you insult me, insult my friends and I will be quite put out."

"Oh I'm so sorry, where are my manners? Maybe we should talk about that lunatic wife of yours-"

"I think that's enough small talk and pleasantries Amycus.", Neville interrupted as he drew his wand. A few seconds later and Amycus found himself restrained in the chair set in the center of the cell. "Now Amycus, I have some questions and I really would like to hear the truth."

"GO TO HELL YOU FU-"

"I thought you'd say something like that.", Neville calmly interjected. He grabbed hold of Amycus' right pinky finger. "Now just remember, this will hurt you more than it hurts me." Neville bent the digit backwards until it met the back of Amycus' hand with a sickening crackling sound. Amycus' screams went unheard in the prison.

_Some Hours Later_

Neville finished magically mending Amycus' fingers and he sat propped up in a corner of his cell. He made sure his mending was rough as he cast the spells. "Thank you for your cooperation Amycus. In the future, you would do well to cooperate sooner."

Amycus began a low, sinister laugh. "Look at you Longbottom. Resorting to torture to get your way. Muggle torture no less. You knew that would have a greater effect on me than the Cruciatus Curse."

"Maybe I just liked the personal touch."

"You enjoyed it didn't you? Couldn't bring yourself to make others suffer at Hogwarts but look at you now. You're like of us. You were wrong you know? You would have made a fine addition to his ranks."

Amycus didn't have to say his name for Neville to know who he was talking about. "There is a difference between us but I don't think you'll ever understand it."

"Humor me."

"I did what was necessary. You did it because you just thought it was fun. So much wasted time and effort."

Amycus laughed in a hideous imitation of a smile. "We'll never go away Longbottom. You should have killed us when you had the chance. You're too soft." Neville turned to head for the cell door. "How long do you think you can protect her? I was able to reach you, and her, from in here! You can't stop us Longbottom! You'll never win!"

Neville turned to face Amycus. "I'm not the same person as I was at Hogwarts. There have been some…changes. Also, I'm not the only one who has someone they care about. You do too, don't you?" Neville reached into bag that Amycus had not noticed that was lying by the door. Amycus' face froze in shock as a severed human hand with very familiar feminine features was thrown by Neville at his feet. "Know that you're the cause for your dear sister's condition. And remember, don't ever entertain even the vaguest notion of messing with me or my family ever again. Otherwise, you may see me become really angry. Enjoy your partial family reunion Amycus."

Amycus' face was pale and ashen. His lips quivered as he attempted to form words. "A…Al…Alecto…sis? Alecto…no…no…ALECTO!"

As Neville stepped through the door, Ken secured it behind him. The sounds of screaming were cut off as the thick, metal door slammed shut. "I take it he believed you?"

"If he didn't, he's putting on quite a performance."

"So what did you use as a base?"

"Just a bread roll."

"How long will it last?"

"About four hours…I think."

"How much time did you spend on it?"

"About an hour." Neville frowned as he admitted this piece of information.

"You're kidding-"

"Give me a break Ken! Transfiguration is still not one of my strengths."

"Still! An hour…" Ken shook his head.

"I had to really concentrate." Ken tried not to laugh as Neville managed to look sheepish. "I just hope it serves its purpose."

"Probably better than what he deserves."

"Careful, that's how we end up like them."

"This isn't The War anymore, remember Neville? Things aren't as black and white anymore. Everything seems to fade to grey."

"I try not to believe that."

"Hope you have better luck than I do. Almost forgot, did you find out anything useful?"

"I think so. Quite a few answers, even more questions."

"Isn't that how it always is? It's not like a Muggle mystery on the telly."

Neville shook his head. "It never is. Thanks again Ken."

"Take care Nev."

_Some Time Later_

Harry Potter looked up from his stack of paperwork as an old friend dropped into the seat before his desk. He smiled as he set down his quill. "They still give you the code for the back door?"

"I still have reason to drop by now and again.", Neville replied with a grin.

"Did you find out what you needed?" Harry's smile faded.

Neville's grin disappeared as well. "Yes and no."

"Do I want to know how you found out?"

"No."

"Alright, where do we begin?"

"We were right. Evil never truly goes away. I think we're in this for the long haul."

**Author's Note: I wrote this chapter for "Home is Wherever You Are" but I could not figure out where or how to include it. Eventually, I nixed it from the storyline. Hopefully, it stands alone just fine. I'll admit that Neville probably seems OOC in this story. I am basing that on the premise that his experiences have changed him.  
**

**Faerun is a tribute to Dungeons and Dragons, a game that provided hours of enjoyment and plenty of inspiration.**


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